


Photo Finish

by Libraryadia, Mara_Jade101



Series: Kids No More [19]
Category: Cam Jansen Series - David A. Adler
Genre: F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Torture, Kid Detectives AU, Multi, Non-Consensual Kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:07:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 13,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28134420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Libraryadia/pseuds/Libraryadia, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mara_Jade101/pseuds/Mara_Jade101
Summary: Cam Jansen and Eric Shelton know the stories: where the best friends end up together after one, or in some cases both, of them is kidnapped and put through a day or so of torture before being rescued and revealing their feelings for each other in the process of rescue.They’re determined to not let that happen.But when several rich and political families are robbed of their most valuable family heirlooms, and rumors of a possible mole in the families come to light, Cam and Eric must balance their not-so-secret-love with the mystery life, and Eric faces the possibility of losing Cam forever.Will they survive?
Relationships: Amy Black (OC) & Edgar Black (OC) & Emily Black (OC), Cam Jansen & Eric Shelton & Anna Parker & Katrina Parker, Cam Jansen & Eric Shelton & Anna Parker (OC) & Katrina Parker (OC), Cam Jansen & Eric Shelton & Original Character(s), Cam Jansen/Eric Shelton, Lucia Bastita (OC) & Amy Black (OC) & Willow Robinson (OC) & Gus Parker (OC), Lucia Bastita (OC)/Amy Black (OC)
Series: Kids No More [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1889242





	1. Chapter 1- Cam

_‘I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!’_

15-year-old Cam Jansen ran down the sidewalk, her heart pounding like a drum as she sprinted toward her school. Dodging the cars stopped on the crosswalk of all things, she managed to run up the stairs and burst through the doors just as the warning bell rang. She caught her breath and sighed in relief as she walked toward the first class of the day. 16-year-old Willow Robinson waved at her from her desk as Cam collapsed into hers. “Hey, Cam! What’s up?”

Cam waved at her and caught her breath again. “I overslept.”

Willow shook her head and smiled. “Again?”

Cam rolled her eyes. “No, not again. I was finishing up algebra homework. I may have a photographic memory, but I can not understand math at all!”

She watched Willow chuckle and the older girl turned back to the front as their teacher started talking. “How’s Eric?” Willow suddenly teased.

Cam blushed deeply before slamming the brakes on her emotions. “He’s fine.”

She glanced at the notes Mrs. Jackson was writing on the board and clicked her tongue. While she still had her photographic memory, she was 14 when she decided that saying her trademark “click” out loud sounded too immature and was more likely to get her caught, instead settling for clicking her tongue or saying it mentally.

...she was also 14 when she realized that she was crushing on her best friend, Eric Shelton. 

And according to everyone else…it was really obvious.

_‘To everyone except Eric.’_ Cam thought to herself and shook her head. _‘But I’ll tell him when I’m ready.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again, everyone! Mara Jade here, and this is another of our "Kids No More" stories.   
> **Be warned: there is non-consensual kissing in this, so if you are sensitive to that, this is not the story for you.**  
>  In the meantime, We hope you enjoy!


	2. Chapter 2: Eric/Willow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric speaks with Willow and there's a plan to get the two oblivious duo together.

Eric raised an eyebrow as Willow Robinson took a seat next to him in biology. She and Cam were friendly so he knew her but they weren’t close friends or anything. “Hey, Willow; what’s up?”

“What? Can’t a girl get to know the friend of a friend better?” the dark-haired girl said with a smirk.

Eric rolled his eyes but smiled. “Yes but in class isn’t the best time to do that.”

“Well, when am I supposed to have one-on-one with you? You and Cam are always together unless one or both of you are sick.” Willow looked thoughtful. “Or one of your siblings gets sick but then Cam’s the one who needs someone to hang out with.”

Eric shrugged. “Fair. But still; class is getting ready to start. And Cam is the one who remembers everything.”

Willow smirked as she pulled out her binder for their current class. “Do I detect a note of hero worship?”

Eric blushed. “Well, why not? Cam’s amazing. Solves every case she comes across and she’s been doing that since kindergarten.”

Willow giggled. “So what’s with the blushing then? It shouldn’t be embarrassing to think highly of your very clever and very pretty _best friend.”_

Eric’s blush deepened at the emphasis Willow had placed on her last two words. _‘Can everyone but Cam tell?! But I can’t say anything; she’d never see me that way and I can’t lose her…’_

Mercifully the teacher called class to order and he turned his focus to taking notes.

XXX

Willow stepped out to the front of the school and looked around before a voice called “Willow! Over here!”

She headed quickly for the source of the voice, her friend Lucia Bastita who was standing with mutual friend Gus Parker and her girlfriend Amy Black. “Hey, Guys. How was your day?”

After the general “Good/Not too bad.”, Lucia asked with sparkling eyes “So what’s the verdict?”

“Cam and Eric are ALMOST as bad as you and Amy were,” Willow said with a playful smirk.

Lucia and Amy both colored; then Amy asked “How so?”

“Well, both of them can function around each other,” Willow explained, smirk widening as the couple’s blushes deepened. “But Cam seems to be waiting for a ‘perfect’ moment to confess while Eric seems to be under the impression that not only does Cam not share his feelings but couldn’t.”

“I swear you can read minds,” Amy grumbled though without any real heat.

Willow shrugged. “I’m just good at reading faces. And it’s not like I know for sure I’m right about what they’re thinking; I just know that they like each other but they’re the only ones who don’t know.”

A honk broke up their conversation and the four friends turned towards it.

“Yo, Mimi!” Amy’s older sister Emily yelled from her girlfriend (and almost fiancee) Vera’s van. “Get moving! We may be out from under Incubator and Donor’s thumbs but we still need to hobnob! You can bring your girlfriend and your friends since we have plenty of random clothes lying around but you need to hurry!”

“The party is tomorrow night, Leelee!” Amy yelled back. “But I’m coming!” She shook her head as her sister cackled and turned back to the group. “So you guys are coming to the party?”

“Wouldn’t miss it, Corazon,” Lucia said with a peck on Amy’s cheek, making the brunette blush while smiling goofily.

“Us too,” Gus added.

Willow nodded. “Strength in numbers.”

As Amy climbed into Vera’s van and the young botanist-in-training drove off, Lucia turned to Willow. “So...any plans to get our school’s favorite detectives together?”

Willow shook her head. “Not until one or both of them asks. I may want them to hook up but actually doing it is their business and decision.”

“But you and Gus set me and Amy up!” Lucia whined in confusion.

“After you said you wanted to ask her out but didn’t know how and Amy came to me begging for help in figuring out how to confess,” Willow said firmly. “I want my friends to be happy but it is not and never has been my place to make those decisions for them.”

Lucia pouted but conceded with a nod. “Yeah...I guess those ‘let’s hook them up with a zany scheme’ things only work in fiction, huh?”

“Yes. Yes they do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Libraryadia: Gus’ surname here is a combination of TOH!Willow’s and TOH!Gus’ while Lucia’s surname is that of the inspiration for Luz; Amy’s name is based on a combination of the fanon for human!Amity’s first name (with Emily being a similar human spin on Emira and Vera being Viney) and the Black family in “Harry Potter”. And yes; the Blacks get involved in the case du story. Note on the Blacks; Amy, Emily and Edgar spent their childhoods being emotionally abused and neglected by their parents but not too long ago, Amy turned them in for physical abuse. Fortunately Emily and Edgar were old enough that they were able to take custody of their younger sister; now the three of them plan on being Aunts and Uncle Pennybags, using their family fortune to help others. This comes with a side of having to mingle and make connections with other rich and well-connected people but at least they can feel good about what they’re doing with their wealth...So the Blacks are victims only; they have nothing to do with the thefts.


	3. Chapter 3- Tucker Kane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tucker deals with his jerk playboy of a father.

19-year-old Tucker Kane frowned at his father as the doors slid shut. “Ok, what’s going on? Is this about me hitting on that Brady girl again?”

Senator Carter Kane shook his head. “No, this is not about you and your uncontrollable actions around girls.”

He rolled his eyes. “I can control my actions, Father. But you said yourself that the girls are…” he let out a wolf-whistle, that had any girl been in the room with him, they would have shuddered and walked away.

Senator Kane shook his head and walked over to the [painting ](https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/waterhouse-the-lady-of-shalott-n01543) on the wall behind him. Curling his hand around a small piece of the frame, he gently pulled the painting away to reveal a medium-sized safe installed in the wall. “This has been in my family for generations.”  He began.

“You mean Mom’s family.” Tucker corrected absentmindedly, rolling his eyes as he leaned against the flowered wallpapered wall.  _ ‘Dad was always the type of guy who put himself and his work over his family…’ _

“I mean  _ our _ family.” He corrected and Tucker rolled his eyes again.

“Ok, sure. Our family.”

The senator started typing something in the safe’s lock, and it opened to reveal a magnificent collection of jewelry, although what caught his attention the most was a single pair of [golden rings.](https://www.etsy.com/listing/764351739/18k-solid-gold-rose-quartz-crystal?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=flower+shaped+ring&ref=sc_gallery-1-1&plkey=01be341cc8395d7e6dd4bc9777d74b15b2e9fbdc%3A764351739&pro=1&frs=1)

Tucker frowned. “Our legacy is a collection of jewelry?”

“Not just any jewelry.” His father corrected, gently picking up the pair of golden rings and setting it on the desk. “This jewelry we inherited from..."

_ ‘Watch the jewelry turn out to be fake…’ _ he thought to himself and nodded. “Well, if that’s all you wanted me for, I have a meeting in the morning that I have to attend, so…”

Senator Kane frowned and nodded. “If you say so…”

He turned toward the safe and placed the jewelry back in before closing the door and the painting. Tucker gave an internal sigh of relief and walked out the door toward his room.  _ ‘Thank God, I hate dealing with my father when he gets like this…’ _

XXX

A shout rang out in the air as he bolted up from his bed and rubbed at his eyes.  _ ‘The hell? That sounded like…’ _

Tucker quickly grabbed a shirt off of his chair and walked out of his bedroom door, sliding it on as he ran toward his father’s study. He opened the door to see his father frantically searching for something behind the painting… “Dad, what’s wrong?” He asked.

“The jewelry!” Senator Kane yelled, spinning around to look at him. “It’s gone!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mara: Carter Kane is named for Rick Riordian’s “The Kane Chronicles” Carter Kane, but they are most definitely not the same person. Carter is definitely a playboy, and he gets his comeuppance later. Tucker acts the way he does because he wants his father’s approval, and he is secretly dating Charity Brady, who his father deems as “unattainable”.


	4. Chapter 4: Amy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A theft is made at the Blacks' auction.

Amy sipped at the glass of punch Lucia had brought her a little bit ago while listening to Earl Rutherford chatter on about his latest acquisitions and his lawyer daughter and businessman son (not that she disparaged people in either profession but the Rutherford children were clearly in the “self-absorbed, sleazy and favoring-the-wealthy-no-matter-what” category).

“And you, Young Lady?” the man asked. “You and your...companions surely must have plans for the future.”

Amy gave him a simpering smile. “Well, Willow wants to go into botany, like Vera.” She relished the barely disguised look of revulsion on Earl’s face at the mention of her sister’s girlfriend. “Gus I think hopes to go into film; he’s still deciding as he’s only 14 after all. As for me and Lucia, I plan on going into business, with a minor in art. Lucia plans to get a degree in Literature; her web novel is off to a solid start so there’s that.”

“Ah yes. Good of you to pick such clever friends, common as they are.” Earl took a swig of his wine and remarked “I wonder what is keeping our host and hostess?”

“Probably finalizing what heirlooms we want to keep and which we plan to auction later this month,” Amy remarked casually.

Earl snorted. “Giving up family heirlooms and using the proceeds for the common people? What would your parents think?”

“Considering my parents considered a 98% to be worthy of a beating and locked me in a closet for hours for ‘faking’ a severe illness on the day of a test they thought I had to take to prove their children were all perfect, I don’t care what they would have thought and neither do either of my siblings.” Amy smirked as Earl went red and hurriedly excused himself; she couldn’t tell if it was because he realized he had stuck his foot in his mouth or because he refused to listen to such a “disrespectful” child anymore but either way, she was glad to be rid of him.  _ ‘Now to find Lucia, Willow and Gus…’ _

Suddenly Lucia and Gus rushed over, both looking upset.

“What’s wrong?” Amy asked.

“Come on,” Lucia said instead of answering, gently taking Amy’s hand and gesturing for her to follow.

As they made their way out of the party, Amy asked “What’s going on? Where’s Willow?”

“She and Vera are keeping Emily from having a panic attack,” Gus explained.

“What?! Why?!”

“Not only did someone steal several of the heirlooms, including your Nana Diana’s gold-diamond-and-peridot ring, but apparently they came just as Edgar was doing a final check over. He’s out cold and unresponsive.”

Amy’s heart was in her throat. Not only was her brother possibly in danger of never waking up but now Emily’s proposal was ruined. The ring in question was of great monetary value yes but more than that, it had been a gift from Nana Diana’s first husband, who she had married for love, and it had been one of the few things that represented what was good about the Black family; Nana Diana had given that particular ring to Emily (Amy and Edgar had received rings of lesser monetary value, a silver ring set with jade for Edgar and a chocolate opal set in rose gold for Amy, but equal sentimental value) and made her promise to use it to propose to the person who Emily wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

As Amy entered the room, she heard Vera saying “I don’t care about the ring, Emily. Not like that. It sucks that I found out about the proposal without the ring but I’d have married you even if you used a toy ring. What matters is that you lost something from someone you adored. So please; stop apologizing.”

“What’s the damage?” Amy asked in a voice of authority; she didn’t really feel it or even have it given her status as the youngest but right now, Emily needed someone to take charge.

Willow answered as Emily began taking steadying breaths. “Ten different pieces of jewelry, including all three of Nana Diana’s rings. A couple of paintings. And of course, Dr. Bennet is checking over Edgar to make sure he doesn’t need the hospital.”

At that moment, the doctor in question came in. “Good news. Edgar is up and doesn’t seem to have a concussion. I recommend ending the party and sending the guests home though; I’d feel better if Edgar went to the hospital for observation.”

Emily nodded, still obviously devastated by the way the evening was going but calmer. “Right. I’ll make sure to send the guest list to the police.”

As Emily left to see to matters, Amy turned to Lucia, Willow and Gus. “It looks like we have a case on our hands.”

“But we’re not detectives,” Lucia and Gus said in confused unison.

“No...but we know some.”


	5. Chapter 5- Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric and Cam bond some, then they learn about the case.

“Hey, Cam!” Eric said as his best friend walked into his room. “What’s up?”

Cam shrugged casually. “Nothing much, I just need your help with the algebra homework.”

Eric chuckled and slid over to allow Cam to sit next to him. “So what’s the trouble?”

She smiled and started talking, and Eric admitted to himself that he zoned out for a moment because of how beautiful she looked before blinking and refocusing on the problem. “So…”

Cam’s phone rang and she groaned, answering the call as quickly as she could. “Hey, Willow! What’s going on?”

She sat up straight and her face paled. “WHAT?!? HOW-?!?”

“What’s wrong?” He asked softly.

Cam held up a hand and listened more to the panicked girl’s rapid fire speech before nodding. “Okay. We’ll be there as quickly as we can.”

She hung up and glanced at Eric. “The Blacks’ auction just got robbed. Amy’s distraught and her sister’s not much better, apparently their valuable family heirlooms were stolen and her brother was knocked out. He’s fine, but he’ll be in the hospital for a while.”

Eric winced. “So we’ll wait on Algebra homework?”

“We’ll wait on a lot of things.” He heard her mutter as she grabbed her coat off of the chair. “Come on, let’s get going.”

He grabbed his own coat and the two brushed hands as they reached for the doorknob. They both blushed and pulled slightly away from each other before he fumbled with the doorknob and pushed it open.  _ ‘Shit, I really am that much in love with her, aren't I?’ _


	6. Chapter 6: Lucia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucia meets with the Detectives.

Lucia held Amy’s hand tightly as Emily talked with the police about what had happened at the party. “It’s going to be okay,” she said reassuringly.

“I’m not worried about the stuff,” Amy said miserably. “I’m worried about Ed! I...I can’t lose him; I just can’t!”

“You won’t,” Lucia soothed. “He got looked over by a real doctor right away and went to the hospital. He’s still there sure but he’ll recover.”

“How do you know that?” Amy whined.

“I...guess I don’t. But you can’t let worry eat you up, Corazon. Right now, you need to get ready for our detectives.”

Willow nodded. “I called Cam and she said she and Eric are on their way.”

As if Willow’s words were a summoning spell, the aforementioned detectives walked into the room.

One of the officers looked over and smiled. “Hey, Kids. Didn’t realize you knew about this.”

“I called them,” Willow said. “Cam’s a friend and...well…”

The officer waved a hand. “Everyone knows about what these two get up to.” He chuckled. “Not sure what they can do though; this isn’t the first case like this.”

Emily finished her interview just in time to overhear his remark. “What do you mean?”

“Just what I said. There’s been a rash of thefts we can’t seem to solve and that despite the timing, don’t seem to have a connection. You know; outside of the victims being rich and well-connected in some fashion and the stuff being some kind of heirloom or inheritance.”

Cam looked thoughtful. “Could we see the crime scenes? If nothing else, that will give us something to work with until we find more solid clues or leads.”

“I think we can scare up some photos of the crime scenes. Hang on.”

As he went to see if he could fulfill the request, Cam turned to Amy and Emily. “So what do we know?”

Lucia muffled a giggle at the way Eric was watching Cam; this wasn’t the time. _ ‘Still though; I may be taken but I am not blind and very bi so I am well-aware that once you actually ask her out, you will be one lucky guy because Cam is DAMN FINE.’ _

Amy sighed. “I don’t know much I’m afraid. I was in the main party room until Lucia and Gus came with the news.”

Emily nodded. “I was in a different storage room, doing an inventory as well. Vera and I were discussing whether enough was done so that we could go back to the party when Edgar radioed me to let me know he was done but got cut off by whoever hit him on the head. By the time we got there, whoever it was had vanished, along with the jewelry and paintings they took.”

Cam’s eyes got far away with thought. “Hmm...maybe those crime scene photos will shed some light.”

Lucia found a heavy feeling settling in her stomach as her gaze drifted to Amy and Emily.  _ ‘Dios; I hope so…’ _


	7. Chapter 7- Cam/Charity Brady

“Here they are.” The officer stated, passing the photos to her and Eric. “If you find anything-”

“We’ll let you know.” Eric said with a nod.

He left and the two looked over the photos. She shook her head and clicked her tongue as she looked at the first photo, showing the collection of heirlooms that had been there before the robbers had attacked-

Speaking of the robbers, the one clear shot of one of them had on a grayish-black mask with a red handprint on its right cheek. 

(The mask is from here:  [ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=G1fVn2yBGwQ ](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=G1fVn2yBGwQ) ) Cam frowned at that. “Hey, Eric? Have you ever seen this before?”

Eric looked over her shoulder at the mask and frowned. “Kinda? It looks like one of those set props that a movie or a tv show would use. But why would a movie or a tv show star want jewelry?”

She shrugged and glanced at the next photo: the open safe with one of the windows leading outside open as well. “I don't know, Eric. I don't know.”

XXX

18-year-old Charity Brady shook her head as she chased her younger sister, 10-year-old Cindy Brady, around the house. “Cindy, come back here! You’re going to be late for school!”

Cindy groaned and slowed down long enough for Charity to slide her backpack over her shoulder and press her lunchbox into her hands. “Charity, do I have to go?”

She nodded. “Yes, you have to go today. I know that you want to stay for the charity event later today, but you have to get going. You’re going to be late if you don't go now.”

Cindy nodded slowly and sighed, grabbing her lunchbox and hugging her sister goodbye as she ran out of the door to where her brother Greg Brady was waiting in the car. Charity sighed in relief and walked toward her mother’s real estate room upstairs.  _ ‘Ok, Cindy is heading to school, Peter, Jan, Bobby, and Marcia have already left, which leaves me, Greg when he gets back, Mom, and Dad at home today…’ _

The doorbell rang as she stepped on the stairs and she glanced back toward the door. “Ok, I’m coming!” She called back and walked toward the door again, wrapping her jean jacket around her shoulders before opening the door. “Tucker Kane?”

“Hi, Charity.” He said softly. “I need your help.”

She felt the blush rise to her cheeks. “Help with…?”

“My house got robbed last night.” He said breathlessly. “I wanted to warn you in case something happens…”

The sound of shattering glass and her mother’s scream caught their attention.

“SHIT!” Tucker cursed and the two ran for the upstairs room. Charity shoved open the door and ran to her mother’s side as she lay on the floor, Tucker grabbing the gun out of his belt and pointing it at the open closet door, where the Brady family’s heirlooms, a collection of ancient books inherited from Caroline Brady’s father, were missing from the safe.

“How’d they move that fast?” Tucker whispered. “Unless…”

Charity swallowed nervously. “...unless they knew exactly what they were doing…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mara: Yes, the Brady Family is named for the Brady Bunch. They are not the normal wealthy family, as they are extremely generous to other people, like the Black kids.


	8. Chapter 8: Cam/Amy

As she and Eric went over the photos again, Cam sighed. “This isn’t going anywhere.”

“Do we know if that mask is an actual movie prop or just a really high-quality replica?” Eric asked as he looked closer at the relevant photo. “Or just a replica period?”

Cam thought for a minute. The idea of the mask being a replica made more sense than a movie or TV star going around stealing the various heirlooms and valuable items but it still didn’t give them any more answers. “One thing is for sure; whoever this is knows the locations they’re hitting inside and out. Meaning either they’re there often, have easy access to the blueprints or both.”

“I...think the blueprints thing would be easier than actually going to the locales,” Eric said slowly. “I mean a lot of these houses are custom to at least some degree so the blueprints would be on file somewhere; you’d just have to find where.”

Cam sighed again. “Maybe. Let’s talk to Amy and Miss Emily. They can probably tell us if their house’s blueprints are on file somewhere and maybe have an idea of where to go next.”

Eric nodded and Cam pulled out her phone to arrange a meet up with the Black sisters.

XXX

“The house blueprints?” Emily asked in surprise. Amy couldn’t blame her; what did the blueprints have to do with this?

Cam nodded. “We think that the people behind this rash of thefts have insider knowledge of the layouts of the houses they’re breaking into. So they can get in and out with ease.” She held up a photo. “Like the Brady heist; it’s been outright stated that the only way a thief could have gotten away so cleanly is if they knew exactly what they were after, where it was and how to get back out of the house with as little interference as possible.”

Emily looked thoughtfully and then nodded. “That...actually checks out. My parents talked about this registar where mansions, townhouses and other such residences were put on file for tax reasons. Almost everyone above a certain level of wealth has at least one blueprint on file in it. Our house is ours for example.”

Cam nodded. “We’ll have to see if we can investigate that registar.”

“I could probably get permission,” Emily said slowly. “But it’s going to take a while.” She rolled her eyes. “Wealth is either nothing but self-satisfaction and glorification or nothing but red tape as you try to make the world less of a disaster.”

Cam sighed but smiled slightly. “Thanks for being willing.”

Amy then cleared her throat. “In the meantime, we need to discuss what you’ll be doing while she looks into it.”

Eric eyed her in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that while there haven’t been many repeat victims, that’s because the thefts so far have been on families that while wealthy, only have a few inherited items that are of actual value.” She gave a sardonic smile. “My family on the other hand has more valuable hand-me-downs than we know what to do with. So I have no doubt they’ll be back at one of our upcoming soirees.”

“So what’s your plan?” Cam asked.

Amy could picture Lucia’s face at her upcoming suggestion even though her girlfriend wasn’t here. “I mean I want you two to come to all the parties. Or at least as many as you can make it to.”


	9. Chapter 9- Eric

“WHAT?!?” Eric yelled, his face burning. “But- What-why-?”

Cam was blushing just as equally. “Uh… why?”

Amy shrugged casually, though he could see the mad gleam in her eyes. “Because what better way to catch a criminal than to lure them to the treasure? And besides, you two look like you could use some time together…”

Cam spluttered out something along the lines of “but that’s… AMY!!!”

Amy grinned at her and Eric. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”

Eric watched her walk away and sighed.  _ ‘No, Cam stole my heart with my voice.’ _

_ “Well, aren't you sounding like a romantic?”  _

_ ‘Marshall Li, I swear I will slap you.’  _

_ XXX _

_ “Besides, why would one of the smartest girls in Washington DC love me?” Eric asked, crossing his arms over his chest. “I'm just her best friend.” _

_ Marshall shrugged and looked down at him. “I said the exact same thing about KC, and look where we ended up.” _

_ “Being kidnapped by a possible terrorist organization? Yeah, I don't want that for Cam and me.” He argued, looking away from the older teen. _

_ He sighed and walked over to Eric, placing his hand on his shoulder. “You just have to tell her. Trust me, everything works out from there.” _

Eric blinked out of the memory and glanced at Cam, who was still burning red. “So… do you want to…?”

She managed a squeal and clapped her hand to her mouth, nodding. “If it’s… alright with you?”

He nodded and took her hand. “Anytime.”

The two blushed deeper and he quickly let go. “So, uh… do we go talk to Amy about what we do next?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” She said.

Eric noted to himself that when they took each other's hands this time, they didn't let go.


	10. Chapter 10: Amy/Cam/Wilmette Millington

“So,” Cam said in a slightly strained voice. “What exactly is the plan for the parties?”

Amy hid a chuckle as she explained “Your cover story is that you’re friends from school that I’ve asked to come to the parties so I feel more comfortable after the trauma of someone attacking my brother in our own home.”

Cam and Eric looked at each other and then Eric said “So...we’re just your friends who happened to come together?”

This time, Amy bit back a groan but nodded. “It’s known that I go to public school and as such, have ‘common’ friends. Adding two more won’t raise any eyebrows; at least not the kind that would concern us.”

“So when is the first party?” Cam asked.

“So that’s a yes?” Amy asked in lieu of answering.

Cam sighed. “Yes that’s a yes.”

Amy grinned and began to explain.

XXX

Cam glanced around the party room at the Black residence, feeling claustrophobic. Despite Eric having published stories based on their mysteries and the attention said mysteries had gotten even before the books, no one seemed to know who she was. Which was good for the current mission.

“Oh; hello. I don’t believe we’ve met,” a female voice said behind her.

Cam turned to see a slight young woman with sandy hair and sharp blue eyes, accompanied by a black-haired man and one with dull blond hair.

The woman continued “I’m Wilmette Millington. These are Horatio Dewitt.” The black-haired one. “And Clayton Fitzcharles.” The blond.

Cam smiled politely. “Cam Jansen.”

Wilmette’s eyes went wide. “Of the mystery novels?”

Cam nodded, unsure of how the recognition felt.

Wilmette smiled with more teeth than Cam felt was necessary before saying “Well, best be off. New money needs to hobnob and make connections. I’m sure you understand.”

Cam nodded as though she did before deciding to go find Eric.

XXX

“The fuck is she doing here?!” Horatio hissed at Wilmette.

“Just goes to show what happens when we let you talk us out of doing things the normal way,” Clayton added.

Wilmette shushed them both. “Tonight is just a recasing. Nothing to catch us on.” Then she smirked. “Besides, now I think we have our ticket to getting the police off our backs.”


	11. Chapter 11- Eric/Anna Parker/Katrina Parker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second party happens, Cam is kidnapped, and Anna and Katrina Parker make their first appearance.

Eric frowned at Cam as she walked over to him with a thoughtful look on his face. “Is something wrong?”

Cam shook her head and sighed. “No.. I just didn't see anyone acting weird or out-of-place.”

“Then maybe we should look at people who aren't acting weird or out-of-place.” He suggested.

Her eyes lit up briefly. “Yeah… but there was one woman…” she shook her head. “You’re right, I’ll go find Amy and tell her what we’ve learned.”

“What you learned.” He corrected. 

Cam rolled her eyes. “Eric, you’re a part of this as anyone.” She reached across and grabbed his hand and he felt his heart skyrocket through the ceiling. “Come on, let’s go find Amy.”

XXX

15-year-old Anna Parker frowned at herself in the mirror and smoothed out her dress as she glanced over her shoulder. Grabbing her purse off of the counter, she popped a mint in her mouth and pushed open the restroom door to the party outside. While this wasn't her usual place to be on a Friday night, according to Willow the last party her friends had thrown had had some interesting guests…

“Anna!” Anna turned around at her name being called and blinked in surprise. 

“Cam?!? What are you doing here???”

Cam blushed and looked down at her dress before looking back up at Anna. “Amy Black invited me and Eric here to hang out…”

Anna shook her head slightly.  _ ‘Sure, and for you two to finally get together.’  _ A mark on Cam’s arm caught her eye. “What’s that?” She asked, pointing at what she had seen.

She frowned and tugged her dress sleeve over her arm. “It’s nothing important, just a random mark.” 

“A random mark that looks like-”

“Cam! Anna! You made it!” Amy called out excitedly as she walked over to the two girls. “How are things?”

Anna smiled and brushed away the thought that Cam was lying to her about the mark on her arm. “They're good. I was just asking Cam what she was doing here.”

Cam blinked suddenly and nodded, her hand grasping Anna’s shoulder. “Excuse me for a moment, I don't feel so good.”

“It’s the air in here.” Anna said quickly, wrapping Cam’s arm around her shoulders. “Come on, I’ll help you outside.”

The two girls said goodbye to Amy and they left the building, Cam straightening up as soon as they made it out of the doors. “Oh thank God, I was starting to feel dizzy.”

“Claustrophobic?” She asked.

Cam shrugged. “Maybe? I’m not one for crowds, especially if I’m on a case.”

_ ‘Aha. So it is a case she’s here for.’ _ Anna smirked to herself. “And Eric?”

“Eric’s talking to our friend Willow about something he thought of, he said he’ll be back in a moment.” She said softly.

She grinned at Cam. “I may be a lesbian, but I know a man when I see one.”

Cam rolled her eyes. “I swear, it’s like everyone can see that we like each other-” her eyes widened. “They can, can’t they?”

Anna raised her hand like holding up a glass in a toast and Cam groaned, burying her head in her hands. “Oh my God… that means my cousin knows… and she’s been teasing me about it for the past few MONTHS!!!”

Anna started laughing. “Cam, it’s fine. Take it from a girl like me: I haven't found the right girl yet. But when I do, I fully intend to tell her how I feel. After we’re friends for several months, of course, I won't spring a question like  _ that _ to a stranger.”

Cam started laughing and broke off in a gasp as someone grabbed her arm in the area that the one-time mark was in and yanked her back into someone’s chest. “HEY-!” Cam protested before a cloth was pinned to her mouth and she jerked around for a few seconds before going still.

“HEY!” Anna yelled, clenching her fists. “I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF AN IMPORTANT CONVERSATION!!!”

The kidnapper scoffed. “And do I care?” The voice came out staticky, like the person was messing around with a voice changer. “No.” They hoisted Cam up onto their shoulder and started backing away toward a simple black car parked on the side of the road.

“Let her go.” Anna said loudly, taking a step toward the person.

The person started walking quickly toward the car, and Anna felt fear grip her heart.  _ ‘If they got away with this… she’ll never forgive me.’ _

“Let.”

“HER.-”

XXX

**“GO!!!”** Katrina Parker screamed, jumping out at Anna’s friend’s kidnapper with a snarl, her fingernails rapidly growing into claws as she scratched at their mask like a cat before they swung Cam’s body around and the girl’s feet connected with her face. She yelped in pain and stumbled back a step before pulling her hand away from her face as the car drove off. Katrina managed to catch a glimpse of the license number and she stumbled back through the doors as the party continued to go on around her. Eric and Willow appeared to her right before-

“ANNA!!!” Willow yelled, running toward Katrina as she sagged against the wall. Katrina bit back a smart-ass reply about how “she’s not her twin”, but thought better of it as fear shone on Eric’s face. 

“Where’s Cam?” He asked.

Katrina looked away from him and he frowned. “Anna.”

“Where.”

“Is.”

“Cam?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mara: Anna Parker and Katrina Parker are my OCs.


	12. Chapter 12: Cam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Can wakes up.  
>  **Warning: from this chapter on, the story will contain graphic descriptions of torture and non-con kissing. If you are sensitive to any of these, please leave this story right now. Thank you.**

Cam came awake with a headache and soreness in both her wrists and her ankles but didn’t open her eyes immediately.  _ ‘Okay; so whoever grabbed me knocked me out and tied me up. Not exactly pleasant but a problem I think I can work around.’ _

She opened her eyes slowly, not wanting to aggravate her headache but nothing changed; everything was still dark. “What the hell?” she whispered.

A hand on her shoulder made her jump and yelp in shock. “Where did you come from?!” she asked before she could stop herself.

A female voice (which Cam SWORE she had heard before but couldn’t place) laughed cruelly, the sound making Cam flinch. “So it’s true then,” she sneered before saying “Well, Defiant; it seems you were right. Take away her sight and she’s useless.”

A second familiar voice, this one male, replied “Naturally, Vicious; all those little stories talk about that memory of hers but if there’s nothing to see, there’s nothing to remember.”

Cam squirmed against her bindings but couldn’t find any give...and she was becoming very aware of the rising panic she was starting to feel.  _ ‘What...what’s going on? They haven’t done anything so why am I feeling this?’ _

A second male voice (and why were these people familiar?!) commented “And it looks like our little detective doesn’t much like being blindfolded and tied up.” He gave a mocking laugh. “Her little boyfriend’s gonna get bored with her pretty quickly.”

Cam felt her cheeks warm at his implication as disgust rose up, though the rising fear overpowered it.

“No need to be crude, Toxic,” Vicious fake-scolded him. Then she laughed again, the sound grating on Cam’s ears. “Not yet anyway. We haven’t even started filming yet.”

_ ‘Filming?!...Please no…’ _

Muffled footsteps ( _ ‘And why can’t I hear them properly? I can hear what they’re saying just fine but anything else...it’s either not there or muffled…’ _ ) and a click were followed by Defiant saying “And we’re going to be on shortly.”

“Into position then. You too, Toxic,” Vicious ordered.

Cam waited for what was coming next but it wasn’t until a hand met her face in a slap that she had any idea of what was going on. “Stop! Let go!” she cried as a hand yanked at her hair.

“Why should we?” Defiant asked mockingly. “We have all the power here.”

Cam whimpered as her panic continued to rise...the hand suddenly playing with her collar didn’t help matters. “NO! Please don’t!...Please…”

Mocking laughter rang as her captors ignored her and continued the manhandling for what seemed like an eternity in her ever-growing panic but eventually Defiant and Toxic stepped away and Vicious began speaking to the camera. Cam was sure she was making some sort of big speech about the conditions of release but right now all she wanted to do was curl into a ball and disappear…everything was either panic or pain and she had no way out.

_ ‘Find me...please…’ _


	13. Chapter 13- Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric reacts to Cam's disappearance.

Eric hung up the phone, rubbing his ear as he turned to Mrs. Jansen. “That was KC. She wants to know why she shouldn't come over and help search for her cousin. I might have paraphrased a little bit, she was really... upset.”

Mrs. Jansen gave a sad smile. “I appreciate the help, Eric.”

Eric just groaned and buried his head in his hands. “I should have been there for her! It’s bad enough that Anna now has stitches in her face from trying to fight the kidnappers off, but my crush going missing is too much for me to bear!”

He realized what he said as soon as he said it and felt his face burning. “I mean-”

There was a thud on the porch and Eric flinched from the sound. “I’ll get it.” He mumbled.

“Eric, wait-!” Mrs. Jansen began before Eric opened the door to find a small brown package lying innocently on the porch. No one was around, but it was not only addressed to the Jansens, it was neatly typed up and not handwritten.  _ ‘Looks like these people know what they are doing.’ _ He thought to himself, walking inside and fumbling with the wrapping to reveal a DVD with a typed note-

_ Looking for your daughter?  _

_ Well, I can assure you: _

_ She’s in good hands. _

_ As good as these hands will get. _

It wasn't signed, and Eric’s heart was racing as he fumbled with the DVD player and-

Mrs. Jansen gasped as soon as she saw the girl on the screen. “JENNIFER!!!”

Eric winced at the sight of her; Cam was blindfolded and clearly disoriented from what had happened, then a hand met her face in a slap that sent chills down his spine.

_ “Stop! Let go!” _ she cried as a hand yanked at her hair.

_ “Why should we?” _ A man’s altered voice asked mockingly.  _ “We have all the power here.” _

Cam whimpered as her clear panic continued to rise...the hand suddenly playing with her collar didn’t help matters and Eric growled protectively, clenching his fists as she tried to pull away from the hand.  _ “NO! Please don’t!...Please… _ ”

He suddenly saw red, then black, and blinked as he found that Mrs. Jansen had grabbed his wrist tightly as she stopped him from-  _ ‘...Did I just try to punch the TV...?’ _

“Eric.” She whispered. “Please don't.”

_ “...the investigation must stop or our little guest will get worse...”  _ a female altered voice demanded from the screen.

Right then and there Eric closed his eyes and wished he could disappear-


	14. Chapter 14: Willow/Eric

The news was all over the school. Cam Jansen had gone missing in the middle of an investigation and for the first time, no one had any idea where to find her.

“This is all my fault!” Amy sobbed. “They only got involved because I asked them to!”

Lucia hugged her girlfriend, murmuring soothing nothings in Spanish but it didn’t help.

“Actually, given their track record, Cam and Eric would have eventually involved themselves in the mystery,” Gus spoke up. “Therefore the fault lies in the people who chose to take her, not you.”

Amy hiccuped but said nothing. Then she shook her head. “Emily got the files for that registar Cam asked for. We need to get Eric and go over them.”

“Amy…”

Amy cut Lucia off. “I know it’s not my fault but she disappeared from my party at my house so that makes it my responsibility. Now will you help me convince Eric or not?”

Willow stared at Amy. The other girl’s face was still tear-stained and her hands shook but her expression was like iron. Nothing could talk her out of what she wanted to attempt.

Willow sighed. “Fine. I have his number. I’ll put him on speaker as soon as we get somewhere private.”

They found an unused classroom and all sat around Willow’s phone as she dialed Eric’s and placed the phone on speaker.

“Willow? What do you need?”

Willow sighed again. “Emily got the paperwork Cam wanted. For the property blueprint registar. We...we need your help.”

Eric was silent for a long time. Then he sighed. “Are we meeting at Amy’s?”

Willow let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding as Amy said “Yes. After school. Emily said she’ll go over it with us; apparently there’s a few details that aren’t obvious from the paperwork.”

“See you there then.”

And with that, Eric hung up.

Lucia managed a sickly smile as she said “This is good, right?”

No one answered...which was answer enough. It wasn’t but they didn’t have many other options...

XXX

Eric stared down at the VERY long list of family names. “I...didn’t realize there were this many people with so much money.”

Miss Emily sighed. “It turns out I was misinformed. Anyone who has a custom built house or similar property that gets valued at a certain price ends up on this thing.”

Eric gave her what he was sure was a sickly smile. “This does help though. Who has access to the files?”

“Everyone on the list could theoretically get their hands on other people’s blueprints if they were able to copy the right keys. Not to mention the staff at the actual archive.”

Eric didn’t hold back his groan. He was still going to try to sort through this tangle of information but he couldn’t shake the feeling this might just make things worse…


	15. Chapter 15: Cam/Defiant

Cam curled into a ball in her cell, shaking from silent sobs (she refused to give her captors the satisfaction of hearing her right now).

_ ‘I want to go home...please; somebody find me...Eric…’ _

She knew what they had asked as her ransom given what Defiant and Toxic would talk about when switching guard shifts.

_ ‘Not like I’m going anywhere anyway. I can’t get this stupid blindfold off since it’s locked on and even if I could, I have no idea where I am. Besides I’m outnumbered and I’m almost certain all three of them physically outmatch me…’ _

She froze as she heard a second presence outside her cell.

_ ‘What does Vicious want?’ _

XXX

Defiant looked up from guard duty (not that the brat could escape with that blindfold on) as Vicious came back in. “What’s up, Boss?”

Vicious shrugged. “Apparently we have...business to take care of. Knock the kid out.”

Defiant nodded and went to retrieve the sedative before heading into the cell.

The kid looked up when he came into the cell. “What are you doing? What do you want?” she whimpered.

Defiant ignored her, instead grabbing her arm.

“Let me go! Please! I...I don’t want this!”

Defiant shrugged. “In case it wasn’t already clear, Kid, nobody here cares what you want.”

And with that, the sedative went into her arm. The kid whimpered but went quiet as the sedative took effect.

Vicious walked in behind him. “Get her set up. We have a message to send.”

Defiant saluted and set about following her directive.


	16. Chapter 16: Cam/Vicious

Cam blinked awake to find herself in the chair again instead of her cell. “God; I hate this,” she whimpered softly.

Having the blindfold was bad enough (and since it was locked on, she couldn’t get it off) but being bound on top of it...Cam shivered.

“Ah; you’re awake,” Vicious spoke from in front of her. “Good. Can’t have a conversation with a sleeping person.”

“What do you want?” Cam asked, just barely able to keep the whine out of her voice though she couldn’t stop the shaking.

“I have a...proposition for you,” Vicious said casually. “A way out of your current nightmare.”

“And that would be?”

Vicious’ hand suddenly cupped Cam’s chin, making her skin crawl. “Join us. Add your keen mind to our operation. It’s something of a Robin Hood operation anyway; robbing the rich and all.”

“Robin Hood stole from the greedy and gave to the poor,” Cam growled. “You’re just stealing from people because they’re rich. Not interested.”

Vicious was silent for a time, though she didn’t remove her hand. Then she asked “I take it you’re saying you’d rather continue to suffer our special brand of hospitality?”

“Nothing you can do will make me work with you,” Cam snarled, though a tremor of fear made her voice shake.

“Perhaps.” Then Vicious called over her shoulder. “Are we ready for the second video?”

_ ‘WHAT?!’ _

“Sure are, Boss,” Defiant called back.

“Then prepare our little guest for her scene.”

Rough hands untied Cam from the chair but her wrists and ankles were quickly rebound before Defiant carried her to where she assumed the camera was.

“Now I ask you again, Cam Jansen,” Vicious said from nearby. “Will you join us?”

“Hell no!”

Vicious snapped her fingers and Cam suddenly found herself being plunged into ice cold water. The panic she was already feeling sharply intensified and she struggled against Defiant’s hold but nothing worked.

_ ‘No! Please...I don’t want to die!’ _

Finally, as suddenly as she had been forced under the water, she was brought out again. Cam coughed and whimpered as she shivered.

“And again I make the offer. Join us and…”

“Go to hell!” Cam snapped weakly.

Vicious let out a mocking sigh. “And again…”

The cycle continued until apparently her captors got bored with this new torture and Cam was dropped to the floor.

“And for the final time,” Vicious’ voice said. “Will you join us?”

Cam felt her lips form the word “Never.” but couldn’t be sure that she had actually spoken before she lost consciousness.

XXX

Vicious smirked down at the limp and shaking teenager on the floor. Little did the brat know she had been filmed from the moment she had woken up. “A pity she couldn’t be convinced to come to our side,” she commented.

“Eh; she’s a detective, Boss,” Defiant said with a shrug. “Been one since she was a kid. Those tend to be hard to corrupt without brainwashing and the like and that ain’t your style.”

Vicious nodded. “I suppose we’ll have to find some other use for her then.”

She shared a malicious smirk with her subordinates. This would be fun…


	17. Chapter 17- Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric receives a second video.

Eric found the package on the porch and groaned internally. _‘Another one? It has been just two days since the last one…’_

He grabbed it and went inside, finding the same type of DVD and note inside as he turned on the video and sank into the couch. _‘Thank God the Jansens aren’t here, I don't think they want to see this.’_

_“Ah; you’re awake,”_ the woman spoke from behind the camera. _“Good. Can’t have a conversation with a sleeping person.”_

_“What do you want?”_ Cam asked, shaking.

_“I have a...proposition for you,”_ She said casually. _“A way out of your current nightmare.”_

_“And that would be?”_

The woman’s hand suddenly cupped Cam’s chin, making his skin crawl. _“Join us. Add your keen mind to our operation. It’s something of a Robin Hood operation anyway; robbing the rich and all.”_

_“Robin Hood stole from the greedy and gave to the poor,”_ Cam growled. _“You’re just stealing from people because they’re rich. Not interested.”_

The woman was silent for a time, though she didn’t remove her hand. Then she asked _“I take it you’re saying you’d rather continue to suffer our special brand of hospitality?”_

_“Nothing you can do will make me work with you,”_ Cam snarled, though a tremor of fear made her voice shake. 

_“Perhaps.”_ Then she called over her shoulder. _“Are we ready for the second video?”_

_“Sure are, Boss,”_ A man's voice called back.

_“Then prepare our little guest for her scene.”_

A man’s hands untied Cam from the chair but her wrists and ankles were quickly rebound before he carried her to where a barrel of water was set up in front of her.

_“Now I ask you again, Cam Jansen,”_ The woman said from nearby. _“Will you join us?”_

_“Hell no!”_

She snapped her fingers and Cam suddenly was plunged into ice cold water. Eric clenched his fists in anger as he watched her shake. Finally, as suddenly as she had been forced under the water, she was brought out again. Cam coughed and whimpered as she shivered.

_“And again I make the offer. Join us and…”_

_“Go to hell!”_ Cam snapped weakly.

She let out a mocking sigh. _“And again…”_

The cycle continued until apparently her captors got bored with this new torture and Cam was dropped to the floor.

_“And for the final time,”_ The woman’s voice said. _“Will you join us?”_

_“Never.”_ Cam whispered faintly before her eyes drifted shut. 

Eric’s world turned red, then black, and he blinked to find that his hand was inside the TV glass, only the screen was frozen around his hand. _‘What the-?!?’_ He pulled his hand out again and the screen continued playing. Eric held his hand close to his chest as the woman’s voice demanded for the investigation to stop… but his mind was on other things…

_‘Did… did anyone see that…?’_


	18. Chapter 18: Cam/Amy/Toxic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Cam struggles to find a way to escape, Amy learns of devastating news.

Cam heard the door to her cell open but stayed curled in a ball as she started shaking again. She didn’t want to deal with whatever her captors had in mind.

She heard a snort, from Toxic. “Jumpy little brat, aren’t you?”

“Wouldn’t you be?” Cam hissed. “I can’t see, you’ve helped torture me twice and your boss is holding me for ransom!”

Toxic snorted again before there was a click in front of her. “Whatever. Here’s your food, Brat. Can’t have you dying on us yet. We still need you for a little while longer.”

Cam cringed with a whimper, waiting for a hit but to her surprise, it didn’t come. Instead the door opened and Toxic said “The tray is in front of you. We’ll be back to check on you in about an hour.” He let out a nasty laugh. “We may not see you as human anymore but you still have the limits and needs of one.”

Cam whined but was otherwise silent. Then her heart jumped to her throat when a hand suddenly ruffled her hair as Toxic said “Good girl; know your place.”

With that, he strode out of the cell, shutting the door and leaving Cam alone.

She sat frozen for several minutes but then unfroze and groped around for the tray Toxic had claimed to have brought. To her surprise, it was in decently easy reach and contained two pieces of bread, a plate of apple slices, what felt like a stick of string cheese and a cup of water.

 _‘So they don’t want me dead; just too weak to fight back,’_ Cam thought bitterly before she began to eat the meager meal. Finally, when the food was gone, she curled up again. _‘I wanna go home...please...I’ll do anything; I just want to go home…’_

XXX

Amy flinched as she watched the news coverage of what the media was calling “the Jansen kidnapping”. It was sharing equal billing with the “Heirloom Heists” and the investigation into both showed no signs of slowing down.

“I don’t understand!” Amy whimpered. “Those two tapes Cam’s kidnappers sent demanded the investigation into the thefts stop! Why is it still on-going?”

“I’m pretty sure the police can’t legally stop investigating just because someone is being held for ransom,” Gus said. “Those impacted by the crimes have to request the case be dropped.”

“So why is the investigation still open?!” Amy snarled. “We’ve told the cops we want to drop the case and I heard the Brady family said the same thing!”

Emily snorted. “You know why, Little Sister.”

Amy’s heart stopped. Her sister couldn’t mean…

“Cam isn’t important...not to people like the other victims of these heists. She’s not rich and she’s not well-connected enough.”

“Her cousin is the president’s daughter!” Lucia yelled indignantly. “That makes Cam his family!”

“ _Step_ daughter, meaning she’s not his REAL kid and therefore Cam doesn’t have a REAL connection with him,” Edgar drawled; he was finally home from the hospital but Amy couldn’t really let herself feel glad about it knowing what was happening to Cam. “So she’s not all that important to him and our parents’ crowd.”

Amy let out a sob. _‘I’m never going to be able to forgive myself if Cam doesn’t get to come home. And worse, Eric’s going to blame himself instead of me…’_

XXX

Toxic walked in on Vicious watching the news. “What’s up, Boss?”

She sniffed disdainfully. “Honestly; I thought we made ourselves quite clear. The investigation into our thefts was to be stopped. Why aren’t those fools who call themselves police listening?”

Toxic shrugged. “From what I can gather, they can’t stop the investigation without the okay from everyone we stole from. And most of them don’t care what we do to our little guest.”

Vicious looked thoughtfully at the television. “Well, I suppose we can wait for a week or so until we make our final video. Give them a chance to change their minds. And in the meantime, start preparing for what’s in store for our guest should they not comply.”

Toxic smirked at his boss. “Permission to be crude?”

“Oh; by all means,” Vicious said with an equally wide smirk. “But be oblique about it. I think we should...surprise her.”

The pair began cackling as Toxic thought _‘This is going to be fun…’_


	19. Chapter 19- Willow/Tucker/Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow watches Eric struggle with his fears, while Tucker confronts his father.

Willow glanced over at Eric and shook his shoulder. “Hey, wake up. Class just ended.”

Eric rolled his eyes and nodded, sitting up straight and rubbing at his eyes. Willow sighed softly as she gathered her things. “Have you heard anything?”

Eric just sighed. “The police won't be stopping the investigation anytime soon… it’s like people don't care about the fact that a detective is missing… they think it’s just a kid.”

He slammed his fist down on the desk. “CAM JANSEN IS MORE THAN JUST A KID GODDAMNIT!!! WHY CAN’T ANYONE SEE THAT?!?” He yelled, his voice shattering as tears filled his eyes.

She sighed and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Eric-”

“Please don't, Willow.” He whispered. “I- I just want to be alone for right now.”

Willow slowly pulled her hand away. “Alright. I was just trying to help.”

He flinched. “Will- I didn't mean it like that!”

She smiled sadly. “I know.”

The warning bell rang and Eric just groaned. “I’ll see you later, Willow.”

“See you later, Eric.” She said, grabbing her backpack and walking toward the door.

XXX

Tucker set down the file and glanced up at his father's livid expression. “Are you alright, Father? You look a bit flushed.”

“How dare they…” Senator Kane bit out. “How dare the police try to cancel the investigation?”

“A teenager is missing, Father, and the police are trying to-”

“NO ONE CARES ABOUT THE DAMN KID!!!” He yelled. “WHAT ABOUT MY-?!”

“YOUR WHAT?” Tucker snapped, taking his shoes off of the desk and standing to his feet. “YOUR FORTUNE? FATHER, LOOK AROUND YOU AND OPEN YOUR DAMN EYES! THE ONLY PERSON KEEPING THIS GIRL FROM COMING HOME IS YOU!!! SO GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!”

“I am doing something about it.” Senator Kane said darkly. “I’m getting my inheritance back.”

Tucker stayed there, glaring at his father, before he sighed. “Well, I guess that’s that.” He pushed himself out of the chair and walked toward the door.

“And where do you think you’re going?” He asked.

Tucker turned to look at him solemnly. “To tell the police that my father is refusing to go along with this. And to tell them that I tried to change his mind.” He picked up his hat and placed it on his head. “Goodbye, Mr. Kane. When hell breaks loose, I hope it hurts.”

He walked out of the door thanking God that his mother wasn't home at the time, or else she would- 

_‘No, don't you do it.’_ He told himself, pulling out his phone and dialing a familiar number. _‘You leave Mother out of this.’_

Charity answered on the first ring. _“And how did it go?”_

“Badly.” He stated, looking both ways as he crossed the street. “He refused to stop the investigation.”

Charity sighed. _“I’m sorry, Tucker. I can only imagine what her family is going through right now.”_

Tucker looked over his shoulder to see a younger teen step off a school bus and walk in the opposite direction. “Yeah, me too.”

XXX

Eric ignored Tucker Kane’s wave of the hand and kept walking toward his house, slamming the door closed as he walked inside. He let his backpack fall to the living room floor as he collapsed on his couch, buried his head in his hands, and SCREAMED as loud as he could.

_‘For everything Cam and I have done to help everyone, THIS IS WHAT WE GOT IN RETURN?!?’_ It sickened him, and he leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes. _‘If another video shows up, I can't watch that… I just can't…’_


	20. Chapter 20: Cam/Vicious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cam learns of a horrifying truth.
> 
> **Warning: This chapter contains non-con kissing. If you are sensitive to this, please skip this chapter. Thank you, Mara Jade.**

Cam woke up tied to the chair again but this time, her panic wasn’t just because she was tied down. Rather it was because of the things her captors had saying around her for the past week. It was always in hushed tones but they seemed to be wanting to get something from her… _‘But I already refused to work with them. What could they possibly think they could get from me?’_

“Well, My Dear,” Vicious’ voice spoke, poison on Cam’s ears. “It would appear that in the grand scheme of things, you are unimportant.”

“What are you talking about?” Cam growled.

“We sent two very clear warnings about what would happen if the investigation into our thefts continued but they were ignored. And what’s the expression about striking out?”

Cam stayed silent until Vicious slapped her and growled “Answer the question!”

“It’s...three strikes you’re out,” Cam said quietly. Then her eyes went wide behind the blindfold. _‘NO! Please no…’_

Vicious laughed. “That’s right, Girl. We’re keeping you. Hopefully you can make yourself useful.”

“I’m not helping you steal!” Cam managed to snarl, hoping she sounded braver than she felt.

“Did I say you would be helping us with our work? I did not. Rather your help would be...of a different sort. Defiant, Toxic, please show her what her new job is going to be.”

The men both laughed and Cam started trembling as Defiant said “Sure thing, Boss.”

He and Toxic came over and were silent briefly before Defiant remarked “You know; this might actually be fun for us both if you’ll relax.”

Cam barely had time to try to interpret that sentence before Defiant’s mouth was on hers in a painful kiss, one of his hands down the front of her dress and the other periodically yanking on her hair. She immediately started trying to pull away with no success.

_‘NO! NO! GET OFF ME!’_

Finally Defiant drew back, making theatrical sounds of pleasure. “Damn. I thought you hadn’t kissed anyone before.”

“GO TO HELL!” Cam choked out before a hand grabbed her chin.

“That wasn’t very nice,” Toxic hissed. “But I’ll make sure the boss forgives you if you give me a good time too.”

With that, he yanked her into an equally painful and just as unwanted kiss.

_‘Get the fuck off me!’_

Cam bit down hard and Toxic pulled back with a yelp.

A hand swiftly smacked Cam hard enough to make her head spin.

“Seems we’ve been too soft with you,” Defiant remarked, his hand grabbing her hair just hard enough to hurt.

“Looks like we need to teach you your place, Bitch,” Toxic growled.

Cam felt a gag being shoved into her mouth and then her world dissolved into pain as Defiant and Toxic unleashed what felt like every frustration they had ever encountered on her body. Finally they stopped, untying her and tossing her to the floor.

Cam lay there, shaking, in too much pain to move and trying hard not to cry. Then she felt the presence of someone kneeling beside her.

“A pity you refused us,” Vicious said in a mockery of care. “Now you’re going to spend the rest of your life with that blindfold on as our stress reliever. I mean I usually prefer a man’s touch but I’m sure I could find myself enjoying certain...services you could learn to provide.”

Cam let out a sob but Vicious wasn’t done.

“Might even end up renting you out. I’m sure there’s more than one person who has it out for you and there could be multiple aspects of your job.”

Cam let herself dissolve into tears and didn’t stop until she had passed out again, her last thought being _‘And I didn’t get the chance to tell Eric how I feel about him...now I’m never going to get the chance because I’m never getting out of here…’_

XXX

Vicious smirked down at her captive. In truth, she had lied about her sexual preferences to screw with her team’s new pet; as long as it was sex and felt good, she didn’t care. But romance? That was for suckers, as proven by the brat at her feet. If she had been more selfish and hadn’t stuck to her pointless nobility, she wouldn’t be in her current mess.

_‘Oh well; her loss.’_

“All right, Defiant, Toxic,” she said aloud. “Put her in the isolation cell. We’ll leave her there until she’s in a more...submissive mood. Leave the gag in and use the leash and ankle chains.”

The pair saluted and carried the girl out of the room to start her training.

Vicious chuckled. _‘By the time we let her out of that cell, she’ll be willing to do whatever we tell her to. And if she isn’t...well, we can just keep putting her back until she is.’_


	21. Chapter 21- Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric finds the third video.
> 
> He snaps.

Eric swore that he was going to find whoever gave him the gift of prophecy and slap him across the face. He stared down at the third DVD he had gotten since Cam was kidnapped and closed his eyes.

_ ‘I can't do it… I just can’t… but Cam’s counting on someone to save her…’ _

He popped the DVD in the player and curled his hands into fists around the stress ball (that he had borrowed from Amy earlier that day; she said that he might need it) and closed his eyes.

_ “Well, My Dear,”  _ the woman’s voice spoke, poison in his ears.  _ “It would appear that in the grand scheme of things, you are unimportant.” _

_ “What are you talking about?” _ Cam growled.

_ “We sent two very clear warnings about what would happen if the investigation into our thefts continued but they were ignored. And what’s the expression about striking out?” _

Cam stayed silent until the woman slapped her and growled  _ “Answer the question!” _

_ “It’s...three strikes you’re out,” _ Cam said quietly. 

Then she gasped.

The woman laughed.  _ “That’s right, Girl. We’re keeping you. Hopefully you can make yourself useful.” _

_ “I’m not helping you steal!” _ Cam managed to snarl.

_ “Did I say you would be helping us with our work? I did not. Rather your help would be...of a different sort. Defiant, Toxic, please show her what her new job is going to be.” _

The men both laughed and Cam started trembling as one said  _ “Sure thing, Boss.” _

The pair came over to stand in front of Cam and were silent briefly before... _ “You know; this might actually be fun for us both if you’ll relax.” _

Eric grabbed the remote and turned it off, running to the bathroom to throw up what little lunch he’d had that day before grabbing a hold of the sink, shaking.  _ ‘I’m going to kill them. I’m going to KILL THEM.’ _

He somehow managed to walk out of the bathroom and watch the rest of the video.

The first man’s mouth was on Cam’s in a painful kiss, one of his hands down the front of her dress and the other periodically yanking on her hair. She immediately started trying to pull away with no success. Finally he drew back, making theatrical sounds of pleasure.  _ “Damn. I thought you hadn’t kissed anyone before.” _ Eric flushed red with embarrassment and anger. The one time they had kissed was because of a stupid dare… but that dare had only shown him how he really felt about her-

_ “GO TO HELL!” _ Cam choked out before a hand grabbed her chin.

_ “That wasn’t very nice,” _ the second man hissed.  _ “But I’ll make sure the boss forgives you if you give me a good time too.” _

With that, he yanked her into an equally painful and just as unwanted kiss. Cam bit down hard and he pulled back with a yelp. A hand swiftly smacked Cam hard enough to leave Eric wincing in sympathy.

_ “Seems we’ve been too soft with you,” _ The man remarked, his hand grabbing her hair just hard enough to hurt.

_ “Looks like we need to teach you your place, Bitch,” _ The second man growled.

Eric looked away from the video as the two men began punching her and squeezed the stress ball again, feeling it snap under his anger. Finally they stopped, untying her and tossing her to the floor. Cam lay there, shaking, clearly in too much pain to move and trying hard not to cry. Then the woman walked over and knelt beside her.

_ “A pity you refused us,” _ She said in a mockery of care.  _ “Now you’re going to spend the rest of your life with that blindfold on as our stress reliever. I mean I usually prefer a man’s touch but I’m sure I could find myself enjoying certain...services you could learn to provide.” _

_ ‘OH HELL NO!!!” _

Cam let out a sob but she wasn’t done.

_ “Might even end up renting you out. I’m sure there’s more than one person who has it out for you and there could be multiple aspects of your job.” _

Cam dissolved into tears as the woman turned to look at the camera.  _ “As for the people viewing this video, I’m feeling a bit grateful today, so I’ll give you a gift of my own! I’ll keep you updated on how she’s doing every now and then… and maybe then will you see her again…” _

The next thing Eric knew, his fist was in the wall and his throat was raw and dry-

There was a sound of something unlocking in the door, then his mom walked in with his younger sisters and brother. “Hello… Oh, Eric! How are you…?” She trailed off at the sight of him and sighed. “Donna, Diane, Howie, go upstairs please. Eric and I need to talk.”

As soon as his siblings left, Eric pulled out the DVD and held it gingerly in his hands. “I need to call the police.” He whispered.

His mom watched him worriedly. “Whatever you saw, it’s not going to work. We’re going to find her-”

“They’re going to keep her, Mom.” The words tasted like ash in his mouth. “They’re going to keep her and break her until there’s nothing left of her.”

“No, they’re not.”

Eric just swallowed his anger and glared at the fist-sized hole in the wall. “I need to call the police.” He repeated emptily.

_ ‘God, Cam… I’m sorry I can't save you…’ _


	22. Chapter 22: Cam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cam realizes that she's not going to be rescued in time...
> 
> Or is she?

**[A week later]**

Cam heard the door to her new cell open but didn’t bother to look up. Not only could she not see in the first place but it didn’t matter if she acknowledged whoever had come in or not; they’d just do whatever they wanted...and what they wanted was to break her. Turn her into nothing but a toy to use however they pleased. But she wasn’t going to let them...right?

“Wake up, Bitch,” Defiant said as he grabbed onto her gag and yanked up, drawing a strangled whimper out of her mouth. “Boss wants to give you another session.”

Cam whimpered again. The last “session” three days ago had been torture; she had been beaten for what felt like hours and Toxic had smoked the entire time, blowing smoke in her face the entire time and periodically putting his cigarettes out on her whenever he finished (mercifully they had treated those injuries but they still hurt like fire)...the closest thing to “good” that had happened was them “feeding” her but apparently until she submitted “properly”, she wasn’t getting real food or water, just injections meant to keep her from dying (and she was willing to bet they were laced with something to keep her injuries from killing her too). _‘What are they going to do to me today?’_

Defiant unlocked the chains around her neck and ankles. He ran a finger along her neck, making her shiver. “You’ve got quite the nice slave mark. Wonder how long it’s going to take before that’s permanent. Course the drugs you’re on are making that take longer.”

_‘So I was right. They’re drugging me so they don’t have to worry as much about going too far when they hurt me…’_

Defiant dragged Cam into the hall, ignoring her whimpering as her feet hit the floor. “Calm down, Bitch. We cleaned up everything; don’t see what you’re complaining about.”

_‘Your asshole partner put out cigarettes on the soles of both my feet and you’re making me walk on them! I have every right to complain!’_

But even if she hadn’t been too terrified of how he’d react to being told off, the gag tied all too tightly in her mouth kept her near mute.

Defiant yanked on her again and Cam began the painful process of following him, feeling the wounds on her feet burn with pain.

Finally they stopped in a new room and Defiant said “So what’s on the agenda today?”

Vicious laughed out a cruel laugh, one that intensified at Cam’s whine and muffled plea for mercy. “I think it’s about time we give people an update on our little pet. String her up while I start the camera.”

Cam let out a soft sob as Defiant obeyed, retying her wrist bindings so he could hang her from the ceiling by them. She half-heard Vicious speaking to the camera but found herself starting to drift off...at least until a hand smacked her face.

“None of that, Bitch,” Defiant scolded. “We’re just getting started so you can’t skip out just yet.”

There was smoke in her face again and Cam found herself shaking as she waited for new burns.

But to her surprise, Vicious said “Not yet, Toxic. Defiant and I have something...different in mind. Something slower.”

Cam whimpered again. _‘I don’t like the sound of that…’_

Then she felt a knife near her arm and cringed, waiting for it to cut into her skin...but to her confusion, the blade just started slitting the fabric of her sleeve, leaving open strips all the way around it. Then, after both sleeves had been slashed, the knife moved to other parts of her dress until there were slits all over.

_‘What the hell is he doing?’_

Either her question showed on her face or she had somehow mumbled out something understandable because this was met with laughter from both Defiant and Vicious before Defiant said “The boss and I decided to have ourselves a little experiment; how many slits can you put in an article of clothing before it’s trash you need to throw away? You and your pretty little dress are our test subjects.”

Cam started shaking as she realized what this amounted to. _‘They’re...they’re going to strip me on camera! And not even all at once either! They’re going to make it take as long as they can get away with!...Somebody help me!...Please...please…’_

She let herself sob even as Toxic blew smoke in her face and reached through one of the slits to put out his cigarette on her stomach while Defiant reopened the partly healed burns on her feet…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you tomorrow for the next chapter!
> 
> My readers: *screaming because it's a cliffhanger*


	23. Chapter 23- Cam/Eric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cam is rescued.
> 
> Eric snaps.
> 
> There's a confession.
> 
> God, I suck at summaries.

A sudden bang of a door and several shouts rang through the air and Cam felt hope rise in her heart as she glanced sightlessly at the door. _‘...could it be…? After so long…?’_

“Untie her.”

_‘Eric!’_

“Wha-how?” Vicious began.

“UNTIE HER NOW!!!” Eric roared and someone fiddled with her bonds before Vicious let out a laugh and there was the sound of a gunshot. 

“NO!” Cam yelled, ripping her arm out of the already untied bonds and ripping off her gag and blindfold before-

Eric was standing there, his body flickering in and out of view with the flickering light casting shadows on his body, with a gun in both of his hands pointed at where the camera was- or had been, considering there was a bullet piercing the tripod and the camera lay smashed on the ground. He kept the gun pointed at…

“I know you.” Cam whispered.

Wilmette Millington glanced at her with an indifferent look and her mask halfway off her face. “Of course you do, my dear.”

She couldn't help but flinch and Eric visibly tightened his grip on the gun. “Shut up and finish untying her.” He ordered.

She opened her mouth to say something and Eric glared at her. “NOW.”

Wilmette flinched at Eric’s casual step forward to Cam and gestured for the two men to finish untying her. Once they did, Eric yelled at the top of his lungs. “POLICE!!! THEY’RE OVER HERE!!!”

People came running and someone grabbed her wrist, pain seizing her body and Eric’s voice breaking along with her heart. “Oh, God, Cam… I’m so sorry I couldn't get to you sooner…”

“...I…know…I…don't...blame...you...it...wasn't… your...fault…” she whispered.

Her hand reached up to brush his face as he knelt beside her as she lay on a stretcher _‘not that I know how I got here, but I’m tired… I’m really tired… and I have to get this out…’_

“...I...love...you...Eric…” she whispered and her eyes went shut.

XXX

Eric stared down at her as the police loaded her into the ambulance, letting him stay with her while they called her parents and he softly traced the marks on her wrists, her words still playing in his ears.

_“...I...love...you...Eric…”_

He shook his head and stared down at her beautiful body… her beautiful, **_‘scarred, bruised, broken’_ **body… he suddenly bent his head down and whispered in her ear.

“I love you too, Jennifer.” 

_“Hey, Cam?”_

Eric blinked. 

_“Is it okay if I call you Jennifer only if I mean something really important?” Eric asked as he and Cam sat on the swings outside on the school playground._

_Cam hesitated for a few moments, then nodded. “Yeah, you can. But only when you mean something really important.”_

_The two broke into laughter that carried over to-_

_Eric answered his phone, blinking in surprise at the caller. “Anna? What’s wrong? Why are you calling me at 10 at night?”_

_“No time!” Anna hissed, the sound of running footsteps in the background. “But listen: I found out who kidnapped Cam.”_

_Eric sat up in bed and pressed his phone to his ear._

_“Her name is Wilmette Millington.” Anna said, catching her breath as her voice grew stronger. “She and her two douchebags are hiding out in the house next to the Kane mansion. You know where that is?”_

_Eric felt his throat dry up. “...yeah, I do.”_

_“Good. Now call the police and tell them what I just told you.”_

_Eric managed a nod, then remembered that she couldn't see him and cleared his throat. “I will.”_

_“Great. And also, Eric?”_

_“Yeah?”_

_“It’s Katrina speaking, not Anna.”_

_He frowned. “Anna’s twin, right?”_

_Katrina went quiet. “Sure, let’s go with that.” She said cryptically and hung up._

Eric blinked out of the memory at the sound of his phone ringing. Pulling it out of his pocket, he clicked it open and stared at the multitude of messages from his classmates demanding to know where he was and why were there police officers outside the Kane mansion and how was Cam and is she okay?

“I don't know what you’re talking about.” He muttered and turned it off, taking Cam’s hand once more and stroking his thumb across the back of her hand. “Jennifer… if you can hear me, you’re going to get through this, okay? I promise you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHOOO-HOOO!!!  
> Finally! They're safe now!
> 
> All that's left is the end!


	24. Chapter 24- Tucker/Willow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tucker reflects on his time with Charity.  
> Willow joins Cam at the police station and sees something... interesting.

**[A few weeks later…]**

“So your dad’s finally getting what he deserves?” Charity asked, taking his offered hand as he spun her into a tango.

Tucker smiled with a nod. “Yes. I managed to inform the police of what my dad has been doing when he thinks no one is paying attention, they got him arrested, and now he’s facing a few years in prison for sexual harassment and sexual assualt.”

Charity stepped out of the embrace and the two spun back together as the music continued playing. “And Cam Jansen? The girl who was found next to your house?”

Tucker frowned and stepped away from her. “I believe she is currently leaving the hospital as we speak. She has a boyfriend now, too. Eric Shelton. Now there’s a good man if there ever was one.”

Charity shook her head. “Not as good as you.”

Tucker blushed and spun his fiancé around the room again.

XXX

Willow waved at Cam as she was wheeled into the police station. “Hey, Cam! How are you?”

Cam smiled softly. “I’ve been better. Thanks.”

She nodded and locked direct eye contact with a medium-sized multi-colored magnifying glass mark on Cam’s upper arm before blinking and seeing it had vanished in a wisp of orange smoke. She rubbed her eyes and sighed.  _ ‘I'm seeing things again.’ _

Eric waved at Willow as he entered the room, taking Cam’s hand in a gentle touch before kissing her forehead and pulling away from her. “Are you ready?” He asked softly.

Cam nodded. “Yeah, I think so.” 

He nodded and pulled himself all the way up and looked at the police officer standing nearby. “We’re ready.”

They left the waiting room and walked down the hallway to where the police officer let them into a small holding cell where Wilmette Millington was sitting with her arms crossed across her chest and her wrists shackled together.

Eric stared at Wilmette and turned to look at Cam and the police. “Is this her?” He asked, his voice strangely void of emotion.

Cam nodded and Eric turned to look at Wilmette. He suddenly pulled back his fist and punched her with all of his strength, snapping her head back into the chair as blood spurted from her nose and mouth. 

“ERIC!!!” Willow shouted, shocked.

Eric’s blood-covered hand dropped to his side as he stood there glaring at Cam’s kidnapper. For a split second, his body looked like it was  phasing in and out of view,  _ ‘but that’s just ridiculous.’ _ Willow thought as she wrapped a comforting arm around a shaking Cam.

“I only did it so she doesn't have to.” He whispered, turning to look at Cam.

Cam just nodded and whispered “...thank you.”

Eric glanced down at the blood on his hand and frowned. “If you guys will excuse me a moment, I need to wash my hands.”

Willow watched him leave and Cam let out a soft chuckle. “Why me?” She whispered.

Willow turned around to see her staring directly at Wilmette. “Why go as far as you did with me?”

She shrugged. “We gave the police three chances to stop the investigation, and they never did.”

“We did try to stop the investigation, but some people just didn't care!” Willow interrupted.

Wilmette raised an eyebrow. “And why should we care about that?”

“You’re just like Afton.” Cam suddenly whispered, then her eyes widened.

The room went silent at the mention of…  his name.

Wilmette blanched, then turned a vivid red. “I am  _ NOTHING _ like that  bastard , do you understand me?” She growled. 

Cam frowned. “You came really close, though.”

Wilmette opened her mouth to say something, but Cam beat her to it. “Why me?”

Wilmette set her jaw and looked away. “I’d like to speak to my lawyer.”

Willow stared at Cam’s face in shock, the younger girl’s eyes were blazing in a fury that she  swore had something to do with Eric suddenly opening the door, looking pale with what looked like a fake confused expression on his face. “What’s going on?” He asked.

Cam remained staring at the woman before slowly pulling her eyes away and looking at Eric. “I’ll explain later.” She said softly, then they left the room. 

Cam suddenly brought her hands to the side of her head and started shaking. “I didn't mean to…” she whispered, looking up at Willow. “I didn't mean to say  _ his _ name, it just came out…”

Eric placed his hand on her shoulder to comfort her as Willow knelt by her side and let her cry into her shoulder. 

Something kept bothering her about the duo, though. It was like they were dealing with some life-altering secret they just couldn't tell anyone or else the world was going to end right then and there.

_ ‘Oh, God, What have you got planned for these kids? Haven't they been through enough already?’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, everyone! We are done with this fic!  
> We hope you enjoyed reading this, and be sure to keep your eye out for more coming your way soon!


End file.
